ESPN Men's Basketball

The Sweet 16 and Elite Eight rounds of the NCAA Tournament taught us a little bit about UCLA's discipline, Kansas' talent, Southern Illinois' passion and the importance of reading your rulebooks.

Something Really Good Bruin in Westwood: It would be unfair to suggest that UCLA wasn't good before coach Ben Howland arrived in Westwood. It was fine. However, the level of discipline and toughness under Howland is on a much higher plane than it was before his arrival. And that is the difference between being talented and capable, and winning consistently at the highest level and getting to the Final Four. Discipline does not mean punishment or some sort of militaristic attitude. Discipline means doing the right thing, at the right time, to the very best of your ability. It means paying attention to detail, concentrating on what is fundamentally important and working hard individually and collectively with a purpose. Being tough doesn't just mean being physical or looking for a fight. Toughness on a basketball court can take on many different meanings. Toughness means going after loose balls; it means having the discipline to set up your cuts and come hard off of screens, looking to make the right read; it means running the floor hard every possession; it means grabbing rebounds with both hands; it means talking on defense, being in a stance and always being in the right spot with the intention of stopping somebody; and it means stepping up to the line and hitting big free throws.

UCLA is tough. UCLA is disciplined. UCLA is together. That's why UCLA wins.

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